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Pre-1830
Aus Pop (1830):70,039
Vic Pop: No census Port Phillip Bay is formed about 10,000 years ago. Convict transportation from Britain to New South Wales starts in 1788 -
1830
Aus Pop (1835): 113,354
Vic Pop: No census In 1835, John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner travel across Bass Strait to claim land beside the Yarra River. Batman signs 'treaties' with Aboriginal leaders from the Port Phillip area and takes almost 250,000 hectares of land. In 1837, Melbourne is named and laid out. The first immigrants to sail direct to Port Phillip from Britain arrive in 1839. -
1840
Aus Pop (1835): 279,148
Vic Pop (1846): 32,879 Aborigines are massacred in isolated incidents around Victoria. In 1841, one British immigrant ship per week arrives in Port Phillip. The first non-British immigrant ship arrives from Germany in 1848. -
1850
Aus Pop (1855): 793,260
Vic Pop (1855): 347,305 In 1851, Victoria is proclaimed a separate colony. Gold is discovered, attracting almost half a million immigrants in a decade. In 1854, the Eureka Stockade uprising in Ballarat results in the abolition of the detested miners’ licences. -
1860
Aus Pop (1865): 1,390,043
Vic Pop (1865): 617,791 In 1861, legislation confines Aboriginal people to missions and reserves. General policy towards Aborigines changes from 'civilise and christianise' to 'pacification'. In 1869, Victorian parliament passes legislation for the protection of Aborigines. -
1870
Aus Pop (1875): 1,898,223
Vic Pop (1875): 794,934 Most government-assisted immigration ceases, following an economic downturn. The Australian Natives Association is formed to represent the interests of the expanding Australian-born population. A further four Aboriginal missions are established around Victoria. -
1880
Aus Pop (1885): 2,694,518
Vic Pop (1885): 959,838 Gold, agriculture and manufacturing make Melbourne the economic centre of the Australian colonies. In 1881, the first simultaneous census in Australia showed a non-Aboriginal population of 2.25 million. Laws restricting Chinese immigration are reintroduced. By 1888, Chinese immigration is virtually banned. Chinese passengers are prevented from disembarking from the Afghan and Tsinan in Melbourne and Sydney. In 1888, the phrase 'White Austral -
1890
Aus Pop (1895): 3,491,621
Vic Pop (1895): 1,185,676 Economic depression hits hard and Melbourne crashes into debt. A conference of colonial governments extends the restrictions on Chinese immigration to all non-Europeans. The colonies debate the benefits of forming a nation of federated states. -
1900
Aus Pop (1901): 3,773,248
Vic Pop (1901): 1,201,070 Federation is celebrated in 1901, with the six colonies becoming the Commonwealth of Australia. The new Constitution gives the Commonwealth government power to legislate on matters relating to migration, naturalisation and aliens, but not Aborigines. -
1910
Aus Pop (1911): 4,455,005
Vic Pop (1911): 1,315,551 In 1910, the Victorian Aborigines Act extends the powers of the Board for the Protection of Aborigines to cover 'half-caste' as well as 'full-blood' Aborigines. In 1914, the outbreak of the First World War brings immigration to a halt. German immigration is banned and all assisted immigration schemes are terminated. In 1914, the Commonwealth War Precautions Act causes several thousand Australian residents of German and Austrian origin to be -
1920
Aus Pop (1921): 5,435,734
Vic Pop (1921): 1,531,280 In 1925, the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association is formed, requesting full citizenship rights for Aborigines and land as compensation for dispossession. -
1930
Aus Pop (1933): 6,629,839
Vic Pop (1933): 1,820,261 The Depression years result in little immigration. Aborigines' Progressive Association holds a 'day of mourning' on the sesquicentenary of the landing of the First Fleet. In 1938, the government decides to accept 15,000 Jewish refugees from Nazism over three years; only 7,500 reach Australia before war breaks out. Immigration ceases in September 1939 with the outbreak of World War Two. -
1940
Aus Pop (1947): 7,579,358
Vic Pop (1947): 2,054,701 Australia's sense of vulnerability during World War Two leads to calls for Australia to 'populate or perish.' Nationals of 'enemy' countries such as Italy and Germany are sent to internment camps. 'White Australia' remains the cornerstone of immigration policy. Thousands of displaced persons from war-torn Europe start arriving in 1947. -
1950
Aus Pop (1954): 8,986,530
Vic Pop (1954): 2,452,341 Australia signs immigration agreements with more than 20 European countries, establishing immigration assistance and reunion schemes. In 1955, the number of post-war immigrants to Australia reaches one million. Asian refugees and longstanding Asian residents can apply for permanent residency. In 1959, the Immigration Reform Group is founded in Melbourne, advocating the end of the White Australia Policy. -
1960
Aus Pop (1966): 11,550,462
Vic Pop (1966): 3,219,526 About half of all immigrants come from countries other than Britain. n 1962, the Commonwealth franchise is extended to all Aborigines. In 1965, the Labor Party's longstanding commitment to a 'White Australia Policy' is removed from its party platform. By the late 1960s, around 6,000 immigrants from Asia are arriving each year. A 1967 referendum overwhelmingly votes for Aboriginal people to be governed by Federal legislation and included i -
1970
Aus Pop (1976): 13,548,448
Vic Pop (1976): 3,646,974 A change in Federal Government sees the removal of the last discriminatory references in the immigration policy. However, strict migrant intake controls are enforced and immigration promotion ceases. In 1975, the Racial Discrimination Act prohibits discrimination on the grounds of race, religion, colour, descent or ethnicity. A mid-decade economic recession results in a dramatic fall in immigration. The first refugees arrive from Vietnam, -
1980
Aus Pop (1986): 15,602,279
Vic Pop (1986): 4,019,568 First significant numbers of African refugees arrive, mostly from Ethiopia. In 1985, the Commonwealth government transfers title of Uluru National Park to traditional Aboriginal owners. -
1990
Aus Pop (1996): 17,892,423
Vic Pop (1996): 4,373,520 In 1992, the High Court recognises the prior ownership of land by Aboriginal people, rejecting the concept of terra nullius. In 1993, the Native Title Act is passed. In 1997, the One Nation Party is founded on a platform opposed to multiculturalism, Asian immigration and Aboriginal land claims. -
2000
Aus Pop (2000): 18,972,350
Vic Pop (2000): 4,644,950 In May 2000, 250,000 people march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to say 'sorry' to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for past injustices. Australia celebrates the Centenary of Federation, including a commemoration of the opening of the first federal parliament in Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Building in 1901.